Insider tips and tricks for asking
clients to share their agency experience
By Samanta Ulita
Research reveals that 95% of your customers will read online reviews before
buying a product or service—maybe yours—and that 49% trust those reviews as much as personal recommendations. What’s more, recent surveys also found that positive online reviews have the power to boost customer spending by 31%.
Today’s consumers seek out ratings and reviews for everything from restaurants to dry cleaners, hotels, dentists, and even what types of insurance policies they buy—and from whom. In addition to drawing in these potential leads, reviews offer you direct feedback about your product or service and help you improve your business.
Clearly, customer reviews are a crucial part of growing any business, but it can be a challenge to get people to leave them for your firm. Here are insider tips to get happy customers motivated and even excited about leaving reviews after doing business with you.
Personalization impacts customer reviews
Personalization is a powerful tool for increasing reviews. When you personalize your emails, you tell customers their feedback matters to you and your business. Don’t just send out a generic request for reviews; instead, customize your message to each customer.
Start by using the customer’s name in the subject line of your email and at the beginning of their review request. This will make them feel more connected to what you’re sending them and increase their willingness to respond.
Next, customize the rest of the text based on what type of product or service was purchased. For example, “I noticed that you added a new vehicle to your comprehensive auto insurance coverage last week,” or, “We’re so glad we were able to help you with your revised home insurance plan.” This will remind them why they should take time out of their day to leave feedback about their experience.
Finally, send an individualized thank-you note after each review is posted. When someone from your agency takes time to express appreciation, it shows each customer just how much their thoughts matter.
Score more reviews through multi-channel outreach
One of the best ways to get more reviews is by using a multi-channel approach. Email and social media each offer their own benefits. Email, for instance, allows you to reach out with personal messages and include specific details about what customers enjoyed about their experience, while social media provides an opportunity for easy sharing among friends.
When it comes to getting your customers to leave reviews on your firm’s social media pages, make it as easy as possible. In addition to reaching out via messaging channels like Facebook Messenger or WhatsApp, consider posting on Instagram stories or even sending a text message. The channels that work best will depend on your firm’s particular niche and customer base.
Consistency is key when asking customers for feedback on multiple channels. No matter what platform you use to reach out, customers should instantly recognize your brand.
Craft clear calls to action that drive online reviews
The call to action (CTA) is the button or link that prompts your customers to leave a review. The most effective CTAs are clear, direct, and easy for customers to find on your site.
Ensure that yours stands out by making it large enough so that no other images or text obstructs it, then change it to a bright color that stands out from the rest of your website or app interface. Finally, place it above other elements so they don’t get in the way when someone scrolls your site.
Use buttons instead of links on social media platforms so customers know exactly where to go. Make sure these buttons are big enough to catch people’s attention while scrolling.
Once customers click on your CTA, ensure that your instructions are easy for them to follow. Be plain about what you want them to say about their experience, as this will guide their review and make it more useful for future customers.
Obtain customer reviews by soliciting feedback
As an insurance agent, you should ask for feedback on every interaction—including whenever you sell a product or service. Be sure always to follow up with questions such as, “How would you rate our service?” and solicit feedback on your firm’s customer service with questions like, “How would you rate the way we handled your question about your recent purchase?”
Additionally, don’t forget to ask for feedback on your business in general. Prompt customers with questions like, “How good was the experience overall?” and, “What did we do well?”
Offer value-driven online review requests
There are many ways insurance agents can offer value in exchange for an online review. Incentives to encourage reviews from happy customers—such as gift cards, “swag,” or donations to a cause—can be a win/win for everyone.
Give away something when customers review your services on social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram. These common ways to encourage customer reviews are incredibly easy to do and don’t cost much in return.
Create thank-you pages to collect online reviews
Thank-you pages are a great way to encourage customers to leave reviews. These pages come after a customer has made a purchase or completed an action on your website.
Create a personalized thank-you page for each customer using names and other information from customers’ order history. Your thank you page should also offer value—such as helpful tips or guides for other kinds of insurance they may need—in exchange for feedback.
Make sure it’s easy for people to leave a review by including a call-to-action button, a link that takes users directly to a Google Reviews page for your firm, or an email address where customers can reach out with questions.
Win online reviews with gamification
Gamification involves using game design elements in non-game contexts to motivate people to do things they otherwise might not do. For example, gamification gets people to exercise more or improve their eating habits by rewarding them with points every time they complete an activity.
In terms of asking for reviews, gamification is most effective in conjunction with other strategies, like discount codes or targeted email campaigns. For example, you can use emails to implement a point system with clear rewards.
A specific message lets customers know exactly what they’re working toward. Try something like, “For every five reviews left on our website by June 30th at midnight EST, we’ll give away a prize!”
An example of offering incentives on social media might involve discounts in exchange for customers sharing photos of themselves with related hashtags.
Use employee involvement to score more reviews
Employees are the best brand ambassadors your firm has, so it makes sense that they’d be a great source of online reviews. Teach them how to ask for the review in a way that feels natural and genuine, then show them how responding to reviews works as well.
Moreover, if your firm has multiple locations, consider creating standard scripts so employees at all locations are asking customers in similar ways. This will create consistency across all locations and increase customer satisfaction overall.
Requesting online reviews is an effective way to gain new customers, retain existing ones, and improve your business overall. To get the most out of these reviews, ask for them often and in a variety of ways. If you continue to be creative and try new things, your effort will be more than worthwhile in the long run. n
The author
Samanta Ulita is director of online client reviews for Cyberbacker, a provider of administrative support and virtual assistant services.
